Mail box support



y 1937. R. KING EYT'AL 2,079,510

MAIL BOX SUPPORT Filed June 4, 1955 ATTORNEY Patented May t, 1937 iii? ST EE.

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MAIL BOX sorron'r Rupert L. King, Wilmington, and Herman L. Potter, Hookerton, N. C.

1 Application June 4, 1935, Serial No. 24,936

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a mail box support especially adapted for supporting a mail box at an edge of a roadway so that a mail carrier may place mail therein or remove mail therefrom while in the roadway or seated in his conveyance. The invention has for its primary object the provision of a device of the above stated character which will normally maintain the mail box readily accessible to the carrier and will permit the mail box to swing away from the roadway and in either direction with respect to the support when engaged by a passing vehicle, person or the like to prevent damage to the mail box or its contents and which will automatically return the mail box to its normal position when disengaged.

With these and other objects in view, this invention consists in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

For a complete understanding of our invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawing, in which Figure l is a side elevation, partly in section, illustrating a mail box support constructed in accordance with our invention and showing a conventional type of mail box adapted thereto.

Figure 2 is a top plan view illustrating the mail Q box support.

Figure 3 is a side elevation illustrating in dotted lines the mail box swung away from the roadway.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary disrupted side elevation showing the cam arrangement employed in the construction of the support.

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 showing the cams when viewed from a different angle than that viewed in Figure 4.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the numeral I indicates a vertically arranged tubular post having anchoring elements 2 secured thereto for aiding in maintaining the post in an upright position when embedded in the ground. The post i is sunk in the ground adjacent to one edge of a roadway and is so located with respect to the roadway that traffic on the roadway will not contact therewith. A series of adjustable guy elements 3 are connected to the post adjacent its upper end and extend into the ground and are connected to anchors 4. A vertically arranged shaft 5 extends into the upper end of the post i and is secured thereto. A sleeve 6 is journaled on the shaft 5 and is capable of having a limited endwise movement on said shaft by a set screw 1 secured to said sleeve operating between spaced shoulders 8 formed on said shaft. The set screw prevents the sleeve 6 from becoming accidentally disconnected from the shaft. However, when desiring to remove the sleeve from the shaft it is only necessary to detach the set screw from the 6 sleeve.

The sleeve 5 is formed integrally with a platform 9, the latter being horizontally arranged with the sleeve 6 located adjacent one end thereof. Carried by the platform 9 are mail box at- 10 taching plates I8 and II which are arranged transversely of said platform. The plate It is fixed to the platform at one end thereof, while the plate I I is adjustably secured to the platform, as shown at i2. A mail box I3 is suitably se- 15 cured to the plates IE! and II and by having the plate II adjustably secured to the platform will permit mail boxes of different sizes to be readily adapted to the platform. Secured to the plate In and to the sleeve 6 are braces i4. Braces I5 are 20 secured to the sleeve 6 and to the short end of the platform. The platform 9 will support the mail box I3 at the edgeof the roadway so that a mail carrier while in the roadway may remove mail therefrom or place mail therein. 25

The upper end of the post I is cut at an angle to form camming faces I6 and I1 merging into one another at A and B. The meeting point A of the camming faces I6 and IT is in a plane above the meeting point B. Each camming face 30 is formed on an arc, rising from the point B to the point A. The camming face I6 curves in an opposite direction to the curvature of the camming face H. The lower end of the sleeve 6 is cut at an angle to form camming faces I8 and 35 I9 to match the camming faces I6 and I1. The camming faces l8 and I9 merge together at C and D. The portion D is disposed in a plane below the portion C. Normally the portion D is arranged adjacent the portion B with the portion C dis- 40 posed over the portion A, with the camming faces 43 and I8 resting upon the camming faces I6 and I1 which positions the mail box as shown in full lines in Figure 3. However, should the mail box be struck: by a passing vehicle, person or the like, 5 the impact swings the platform relative to the post and the portion D rides upon one or the other of the camming faces of the post, traveling in the direction of the portion A. After the platform or mail box is free of the force of the impact, the portion D of the sleeve slides downwardly of the camming face of the post returning the mail box and platform to its initial or predetermined position. Should the impact be of force suificient to swing the platform beyond one-half of the are 55 of a circle, the portion D of the sleeve will still be in engagement with a camming face of the post and bring the platform or mail box back to theinitial or predetermined position by completing the swinging of the platform in a complete circle. Also it will be noted that the platform can swing in either direction with respect to the supporting post and when free of the force of the swing will be automatically returned to its initial or predetermined position.

Having described the invention, we claim? A mail box support comprising a hollow vertically arranged supporting post, a shaft extending into the upper end of the post and secured thereto, spaced shoulders formed on the shaft, a sleeve slidable and journaled on said shaft, With the shoulders located therein, a Set bolt secured to said sleeve and adapted to engage the matching the camming faces of said post, said 10 ca-mming faces of the sleeve and post coacting to maintain the box in a selected position and to permit said box to swing in a path of a complete circle or to swing a part of said path and automatically return the box to said selected posi- 15 tion.

RUPERT L. KING. HERMAN L. POTTER. 

